Automated agri foodstuffs production lines, from start right through to packaging, generally require a large number of handling operations involving picking up food products while at the same time meeting strict hygiene standards.
Various types of gripper are known. A first type is to grip using pneumatic suction. These are all-or-nothing systems that apply unknown gripping forces and are unable to cope with errors in the positioning of the products. The efficiency of the gripping of the object is low because of the high variability in the geometry of the objects handled. The placement efficiency is also low because there is no system to deal with the random sticking to the gripper tool and which ensures a correct final position in the placement zone.
Another type is gripping using a two-fingered gripper with two symmetrical jaws. There is no placement system to overcome the problem of sticking and there may be products that fail to be picked or products that become crushed under forces that in theory have no set boundaries.
Gripping using underactuated flexible elements are another type of gripper. Again, one disadvantage is the fact that it is impossible to overcome the problem of sticking.